NSNexus by State

Sales Tax on Services in New York (2026) — What's Taxable

Updated

Reviewed by Nexus by State research team using official state tax sources. Last reviewed .

Guide content last reviewed: 2026-07-30

Whether New York taxes a service depends on how the state draws its tax base, not on how professional the work looks — Enumerated list. Below: the direct answer, which services are taxable, how professional services are treated, and the official NY source behind each rule (retrieved 2026-07-30).

Does New York charge sales tax on services?

Enumerated list

Only for the services New York has specifically named. The Department's own Quick Reference Guide puts it directly: services are generally exempt from New York sales tax unless they are specifically taxable. Tax Law sections 1105 through 1116 hold the list, and a service on it carries the 4% state rate plus the local rate for the jurisdiction where it is delivered.

Services New York names as taxable

  • Information services, and processing, fabricating, and printing services performed on tangible personal property
  • Maintaining, servicing, installing, and repairing tangible personal property
  • Maintaining, servicing, and repairing real property
  • Parking, garaging, and storing motor vehicles (certain types)
  • Interior decorating and design services
  • Protective and detective services
  • Telephone answering services, prepaid calling services, mobile telecommunications, and intrastate telecommunication services
  • Limousine and black car transportation services
  • Restaurant food and drink, hotel occupancy, admission charges, and social and athletic club dues

Named exemptions

  • Veterinary services (Tax Law § 1115(f))
  • Laundering, dry cleaning, tailoring, and similar services (§ 1105(c)(3)(ii))
  • Services performed on property delivered outside New York (§ 1115(d))
  • Services performed on computer software (§ 1115(o))
  • Telephone and telegraph services used in news gathering (§ 1115(b)(i)) and services related to guide dogs (§ 1115(s))

Are professional services taxable in New York?

Generally no. The Quick Reference Guide's rule is that services are exempt unless specifically made taxable, and accounting, legal, and most consulting work is not on the Tax Law section 1105 list. Watch the boundary with "information services," which is on the list and reaches the furnishing of collected or compiled information for a fee.

How New York handles services in practice

The New York rule is the mirror image of Hawaii’s. Start from exempt and look for your service on the statutory list; if it is not there, there is no New York sales tax on the fee. Professional advice — accounting, legal, most consulting — is not on the list.

Two categories catch service businesses off guard. “Information services” reaches the furnishing of collected or compiled information for a fee, which is broader than most sellers expect from the name. And “maintaining, servicing, installing and repairing” covers both tangible personal property and real property, so a maintenance contract can be taxable even where the underlying advice would not be.

Software work sits in a carve-out. Section 1115(o) exempts services performed on computer software, which is why a development or customization engagement can be untaxed in New York even though prewritten software itself is taxable property. Read that section against your statement of work before assuming either result.

Where these New York rules come from

Every statement on this page traces to one of the official sources below. date_retrieved: 2026-07-30.

New York nexus note

New York sales tax nexus and economic nexus threshold: a business with no New York physical presence is presumed to be a vendor when, in the immediately preceding four sales tax quarters, its gross receipts from tangible personal property delivered into New York exceed $500,000 AND it made more than 100 such sales into New York. Unlike most states, New York uses AND logic -- both thresholds must be met. Gross receipts include taxable and exempt tangible-personal-property sales without expense deductions, and sales transactions include invoices, sales slips, contracts, or other sale memoranda, including sales for resale. New York says marketplace sales should be included in the threshold calculation; after crossing, a remote seller files for registration within 30 days and begins collection 20 days later. Marketplace providers collect New York State and local sales tax on facilitated taxable tangible-personal-property sales delivered to New York, and marketplace sellers remain responsible for non-facilitated sales and taxable transactions outside the marketplace-provider rule. New York Tax Department source data last retrieved 2026-06-08.

What to do next

Read the full New York overview for thresholds, filing frequency, marketplace facilitator rules, and registration links. Use the nexus calculator to check whether you have crossed the threshold. For background on the post-Wayfair economic nexus framework, see the pillar guide.

Worked examples: service businesses in New York

The general rule above is easier to apply against a real trade. These national industry guides walk the same question for three service verticals, and each one names the state-by-state differences that decide whether a given invoice is taxable:

Services sales tax in other states

Compare New York's services rules with nearby and similar states' services sales tax guides:

Frequently asked questions

Does New York charge sales tax on services in 2026?
Only for the services New York has specifically named. The Department's own Quick Reference Guide puts it directly: services are generally exempt from New York sales tax unless they are specifically taxable. Tax Law sections 1105 through 1116 hold the list, and a service on it carries the 4% state rate plus the local rate for the jurisdiction where it is delivered.
Which services are taxable in New York?
Services New York names as taxable in New York: Information services, and processing, fabricating, and printing services performed on tangible personal property; Maintaining, servicing, installing, and repairing tangible personal property; Maintaining, servicing, and repairing real property; Parking, garaging, and storing motor vehicles (certain types). The full list on this page is drawn from New York State Department of Taxation and Finance — Quick Reference Guide for Taxable and Exempt Property and Services (TB-ST-740), retrieved 2026-07-30.
Are professional services taxable in New York?
Generally no. The Quick Reference Guide's rule is that services are exempt unless specifically made taxable, and accounting, legal, and most consulting work is not on the Tax Law section 1105 list. Watch the boundary with "information services," which is on the list and reaches the furnishing of collected or compiled information for a fee.
Do I need to register in New York if I only sell services?
Registration follows from nexus, not from what you sell. New York's economic nexus test is $500,000 in gross sales OR 100 transactions. Whether your service receipts count toward that threshold, and whether New York still expects a registration when your particular service is not taxable, are separate questions that the state answers per service — confirm both with the New York revenue agency before deciding you have no filing obligation.
How do I check whether my specific service is taxable in New York?
Start from New York's posture — enumerated list — then check your own service against the official guidance rather than against a general rule. The primary source for this page is New York State Department of Taxation and Finance — Quick Reference Guide for Taxable and Exempt Property and Services (TB-ST-740) (https://www.tax.ny.gov/pubs_and_bulls/tg_bulletins/st/quick_reference_guide_for_taxable_and_exempt_property_and_services.htm), retrieved 2026-07-30. Taxability of services changes by statute more often than tax rates do, so re-check the source date before relying on it for a filing.

Sources

date_retrieved: 2026-06-08

Page-specific sources — date_retrieved: 2026-07-30